Singapore opens new Pasir Panjang terminal

The S$3.5bn (US$2.6bn) Phases 3 and 4 Pasir Panjang Terminal (PPT) development with 15 berths on almost 6,000 m of quay length and up to 18 m draft, is specifically designed to serve the next generation of mega container ships with capacities larger than 10,000 teu that PSA’s customers are deploying.

When the expansion is fully operational by the end of 2017, Singapore will be able to handle a total of 50m teu annually.

Phases 3 and 4 feature the latest port innovations such as a zero-emission and fully-automated electric yard crane systems which the company said will help to raise port productivity.

“This project also reflects our philosophy … always to scan the horizon, discern the trends, plan and invest ahead of time, said Fock Siew Wah, group chief executive officer of PSA International.

“It is significant that today’s opening falls on the same day and month as the arrival of the first container vessel, the mv Nihon, in Singapore back in 1972,” the chairman added.

Beyond PPT, PSA is working closely with the Singapore government on the development of the future Tuas Port, which will incorporate more innovative automation systems, intelligent planning and control systems, and environmentally-sustainable solutions.

With a designed capacity of 65m teu, the Tuas mega-container port will ensure that Singapore is even more competitive and relevant as an International Maritime Centre for decades to come.

Singapore is the world’s second busiest container port after Shanghai in China, which took over Singapore in 2010.

In 2014, Singapore’s container throughput grew 4% to a record high of nearly 34m teu but the growth rate was down from around 10% percent in 2010 according to data from Singapore’s Maritime and Port Authority